Improvement in clothes-wringers



STATES PATENT FFIGE.

VILLIAM A. SHARPE, OF SYRACU SE, NEWT YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN CLOTHES-WRINGERS.

Specilication forming part of Letters Patent No. 152.1125, dated June23, 1874; application filed February 23, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM A. SHARPE, of Syracuse, in the county ofOnondaga and State of New York, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in OlothesVrin gers; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full and exact description of the same, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings and to the letters ot reference markedthereon.

This invention consists mainly in the means employed to adjust a leverfor the purpose of regulating' the pressure of the movable roller, andalso in the combination of certain parts with4 others to form animproved wrin ger.

In the drawings, Figure l represents al1 elevation of 011e side ofthemachine; Fig. 2, a front elevation of one end of the rollerswith theirbearings in section; Fig. 3, a front elevation of the movable roller;Fig. 4, A and B, different views ot' the fulcrum-ear, and that part ofthe casting to which it is attached; Figs. 5, 6, and '7, various viewsof the clamping devices; Fig. 8, a partial view of the crank; Fig. 9, anelevation, partially in section, showing the lip or tlange forpreventing the clothing from being caught between the roller and thesides of the machine; Fig.. 10, a front view of one of the bearings ot'the rollershafts; and Fig. 11, views otl the tie which unites the upperpart ofthe machine.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my iiivention, Iwill now proceed to describe fully its const-ruction and manner ofoperation.

A represents a casting, provided below with the jaws a al, set at anangle to the main portion to correspond with the circle of a tub, asshown, and above with the horizontal cup or Ilanged supporting disk a2,cylindrical recessed projections a3 a4, and extension-arm a5 withorifice a6, as shown. To one of the jaws is xed the clamping devices, asfollows: a? represents a wedge-shaped block, the inclined side of whichrests against the correspondingly-inclined face of the jaw al, itsstraight side being parallel with the face of the jaw a, as shown. a8represents a suitable handle, rigidly connected to the block al by meansof a rivet extending through the elongated slot in the jaw al. a9 a9represent legs projecting' from the handle a, for the purpose ofpreventing it from being riveted to the jaw al. am al represent springsresting in proper recesses in the handle, as shown, which are adapted toprevent the handle and the block attached thereto from being' moved bytheir own weight. By moving the handle vertically upon the fixed jaw althe distance between the parallel faces ot the block andv jaw a isregulated at will. The cylindrical recessed projection a3 is providedwith a central opening in its closed end; and it has, also, its inneredge upon one side provided with sel-rations as shown. rllhe horizontalcup a2 has its iiange cut away upon one side, as shown at x1, Fig. l. Brepresents a lever of the second class pivoted at one end to thefulcruin-ear c, and provided a-t the other with a horizontal invertedcup or flanged disk, b, as shown. It is provided also with a cylindricalrecessed projection, b1, and near its moving end with a rib or flange,'112, shown in dotted lines, Fig. l, and in section, Fig. 9. Orepresents a disk held by means of a central opening upon the girt orsecuring-rod H, and provided upon one side with a projecting ear, c, andalso with a projecting tooth, c', adapted to rest in one of theserrations or notches of the recessed projection a3 of the part A. Drepresents a cylindrical blockof rubber, the ends of which rest inthehorizontal cups of the part A and lever B, as shown. This block maybeplaced in position after the parts of the wringer are united together inconsequence oi' the opening left by the cut-away ange at x1, Fig. l. vErepresents the iixed roller of the wril'lger, the journal of which restsin the recess of the cylindrical projections a* of the part A, acylindrical ring of wood, x2, being interposed between the journal-shaftand the casting, as shown. F represents the roller attached to themoving lever-arm. It is held in the rccess of the projection b inasimilar manner to the roller E above described, its shaft being extendedat one end and grooved, as shown, to receive the horizontallyadjustablecrank e. G represents the upper securing-rod for uniting the two sidesof the wringer together. H represents the lower securing-rod, whichpasses through the orice of the projection a3 of the part A, and alsothe orifice ofthe disk C. Its extreme end is threaded for some littledistance, and it is provided with nuts g g adapted to regulate theposition of the disk (l upon the rod.

Only one side of the machine has been described. It will be understood,of course, that the other side of the same is the counterpart of this.

The operat-ion of the machine will now be described.

The wringer is clamped to the tub by means of the movable block ci, thesaine being moved downward after the jaws have been placed in positionupon the edge of the tub by the handle a moving in the slot of jaw al.The downward movement of the inclined face of the block upon theinclined face of the jaw al causes its opposite face to approach, to agreater or less extent, according to the movement of the handle, theface of the jawa, and thus securely clamp the inclosed edge of the tub.The relative arrangement of the clamping-jaws to the main portion A andlever B is such, it will be observed, that while the clamping-jaws presssquarely at each end upon the curved line of the tub the rollers lieupon a straight line drawn between the two parts, and hence overhang thetub at a little distance from its edge. Power is communicated to thewringer by means of the handle in the usual manner.

The handle, it will be observed, is horizontally adjustable upon themain shaft by means of the set -screw resting in the horizontal groove7as shown, by which means the handle may be moved nearer to a small tubor farther rom a large one, to adapt it for convenient use.

The operation of wringing is performed in much the usual manner, theclothing being passed between the movable and the stationary roller toexpress the water, the movable roller upon the lever-arm B jielding,through the act-ion ofthe spring D, to permit the various thicknesses topass through without injury to the machine.

To adjust the distance between the rollers, and thus increase ordiminish the pressure of the spring D, the fulcrum end of the lever israised or lowered at will by adjusting the disk (l, having thefulcrum-ear c. The disk is adjusted by loosening its securing-nut andmoving it laterally upon the rod H until its tooth c is disconnectedfrom the serration or notch in which it rests; then, by turning it uponthe rod so that its tooth is enabled to engage with a higher or lowerserration of the tixed projection a3 of the part A, a-s may be desired,the fulcrum end of the lever4 is correspondingly raised or lowered andthe distance between the rollers regulated, and the pressure of thespring correspondingly increased or diminished.

It will be observed, also, that the rollers are not relatively held in avertical plane, but that they lie in an inclined plane. In consequenceof this arrangement, the clothing, in passing through the machine, ispermitted to hang vertically for the purpose ot' causing the water torun down Without obstruction; but after passing between the rollers itis conducted forward over the edge of the tub. The journals ofthe shaftsare inclosed in the recess described, and thus fully protected, andtheir bearings are composed of wood, which may be first soaked in oil.By means of the projecting ange on part B, the clothing, in passingthrough the machine, is guided away from the end of the roller, for thepurpose of preventing it from being caught between it and the sides ofthe machine.

Having thus fully described my invention, what 1 claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The-combination of the lever-arm B, the adjustable fulcrum c, and thespring D, the fulcrum and spring being located at the ends of the lever,as described.

2. The handle a, having projecting legs and springs, with the block a7and jaw al, as described.

3. The disk C, provided with the ear c and tooth c1, in combination withthe projection a3, having the serration, as described.

4. The wringer described, having the main part A with jaws set at anangle, lever B, adjustable disk C, securing-rods G H, constructed andarranged as described, for the purpose set forth.

This specification signed and witnessed this 7th day of February, 1874.

W. A. SHARPE.

Vitnesses: l

G. M. PALMER, W. T. LiNrNER.

